EDC 102H F11 Context Reports
Community Data Worksheet - Census Data

Community: Portsmouth

Zip Code: 02871

Authors: Emily Markey and Lauren Schuessler

Use the data tables below to accumulate data from reliable sources about a particular geographical region of Rhode Island. After you have assembled this information, turn it into knowledge by synthesizing a series of sensible paragraphs.

I. Community Data Collection

A. Income Poverty Data

2005-2009

To collect data on the state of Rhode Island:

1. Go to American Factfinder page on the US Census Bureau website
2. Select Rhode Island from the drop-down menu (do not type into the search field)
3. Collect data from the Economic Characteristics section
4. Use other sections to collect additional data as needed

To collect data on your community:

1. Return to the American Factfinder
2. Type the name of your community in the “city/town, county, or zip” box
3. Follow instructions 3 and 4 above

	Community	Rhode Island	United States
Median household income	$74,976	$55,569	$51,425
Median family income	$96,653	$71,037	$62,363
Per capita income	$40,052	$28,638	$26.059
Families below poverty level	1.9%	8.1%	9.9%
Individuals below poverty level	4.2%	11.6%	13.5%
Total Households income less than $10,000 a year	392	30,304	8,329,488
Percentage of families and people whose income in the past 12 months is below the poverty level with related children under 18	3.3%	13.5%	15.3%
Population 16 years and older who are unemployed	541	39,903	10,969,884
Civilian Employed population 16 years and older	8663	523,367	141,333,145

B. Race and Ethnicity Data

2005-2009

To collect data on the state of Rhode Island:

1. Use the American Factfinder page to locate the Fact Sheet or either your zip code or the state of Rhode Island
2. Collect data from the ACS Demographic Estimates section
3. Use other sections to collect additional data as needed

	Community	Rhode Island	US
White	95.5%	82.8%	74.5%
Black/African Americans	.9%	5.5%	12.4%
Asian	1.5%	2.7%	4.4%
Hispanic	.8%	11.4%	15.1%
American Indian or Alaska native	.2%	.4%	.8%
Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander	0%	0%	.1%
Filipino	.3%	.3%	.8%
Korean	.1%	.2%	.4%
Chinese	0%	.6%	1%
Japanese	.4%	0%	.3%

II. Narrative Description of Community

Use the data you collected above to develop a series of paragraphs that describe your community (zip code) and draw comparisons with the rest of the state and / or district. Here is an example of how to do this.


Compared to Rhode Island as a whole, Portsmouth is not a very diverse area. An overwhelming majority (95.5%) of the population is white compare to 82.8% in Rhode Island and 74.5% in the U.S. Black or African Americans only make up .9% which is 4.6% less than the Rhode Island average. The Asian race is the second most prominent ethnicity with 1.5% in comparison to the national average of 4.4%. The Hispanic population only makes up .8%, whereas Rhode Island’s is 11.4%. Lastly, only .2% of the people living in Portsmouth are American Indian or Alaskan native, while the national average is .8%.


Portsmouth is a relatively affluent community as compared to both Rhode Island and the whole United States. The median household income ($74,976) is greater than the $55,569 of Rhode Island and even greater than the $51,425 as compared to the United States. The biggest contrast however is the median family income at a shocking $96,653 while Rhode Island is at $71,037 and the United States only stands at $62,363. The per capita income for Portsmouth ($40,052) is also higher than Rhode Island ($28,638)
















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